


Warriors

by My_Marvel_Musings



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, X-Men (Comicverse), X-Men (Movieverse), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Explicit Language, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2019-01-09
Packaged: 2019-09-20 08:41:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17019414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/My_Marvel_Musings/pseuds/My_Marvel_Musings
Summary: Reader is told she's to be the one to help bridge the X-Men and the Avengers. She meets Logan who’s not the Avengers’ biggest fan.Requested by Trick





	1. Volunteered as Tribute

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader is chosen to speak at the X Mansion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment below for new requests or follow me on Tumblr: @my-marvel-musings

“Why? Just, why me?” You slumped in your seat at the conference table, bored out of your mind. "There is absolutely no reason for me to be at this meeting."

"You mean, besides Fury saying so?" Steve chuckled. "You're part of the team. You should be here."

"So how come I wasn't forced to come to these meetings in the past? I shouldn't be here talking about new policies and what not. I know precisely di-"

"Good morning, everyone." Fury's timing preventing you from finishing your explicit sentence and possibly sending Rogers into cardiac arrest. He cocked an eyebrow at you. "Interesting way to show attention."

You didn't bother to sit up straight. "You assume I want to show any. This is my silent protest."

"As long as you're actually here, I don't care." He dropped a folder onto the table. Coulson and Maria Hill followed in shortly after.

"Ah hell, the whole cavalry's here. This can't be good."

Coulson laughed. "Don't worry, this meeting will go by very quickly."

"But why am I here? No one will answer that." You held your arms out to the side in a helpless gesture.

Fury took control of the meeting back. "We'll get to that in a minute. First, what do you know about Xavier's School for Higher Learning."

"Wait, wasn't it called Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters?"

"It was, until he officially expanded the campus to include college courses. Please answer the question, Miss ______."

"Honestly? Not much. I didn't go to school there, though my parents did express an interest in me doing so. All I know is that it's a school specifically made for mutants, so we wouldn't feel alone during the most awkward times in our lives: puberty." Fury just nodded his head. "Wait, are you thinking.... Nope! No way! Not going to happen!"

"How can you say no when I haven't even said a damn thing."

"Because I know you well enough, Fury. Send Stark!" You pointed at the billionaire.

Tony smirked. "No can do, kiddo. I'm not a mutant."

"Yeah, but I suck at public speaking. It has to be you. You have a weird way of working the crowd." You slapped your hands onto the table and stood up. "No way in hell. Find another lackey, Fury. Just because I'm a mutant doesn't mean I have to be the one to speak at the school."

"I'm afraid that's not possible. Professor Xavier requested you personally." Coulson chimed in.

"Can you repeat that? I think I had something crazy in my ear. Why would Xavier ask for me? I've never met nor spoken to the man before."

"He knows you're the only mutant on the team."

"That's actually a big fat lie. Wanda's a mutant."

Scarlet Witch looked up started. "What? I got my powers from the mind stone!"

You shake your head. "No, the mind stone activated your dormant X-Gene. That's why you and your brother had different powers."

Her jaw dropped. "How do you know that?"

"Honestly? It makes the most sense. Think about it? The stones had powers, but it can't really give you powers without killing you. And the mind stone gave you the powers of the mind but not your brother? That makes zero sense."

"Holy shi-"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" All heads whipped to look back at Fury. He leveled his one eye in your direction. "Now, what the hell is going on that you can't take this job on?"

All eyes fell on you and it made you feel self conscious. "Probably for the same reason I reeeeaaaaalllllyyyyy want to leave this meeting right now. I hate having all the attention on me. I know, that seems weird for an Avenger. But in those incidents I'm in the moment, trying my best to stop the bad guy, save the day, blah, blah, blah. My focus is elsewhere during those moments. But this.... speaking to a group. Thanks, but pass. Best to leave that to our fearless leaders."

You gestured towards Steve and Tony as you finished your speech. Fury pressed his lips together in a thin line. "I get what you're saying."

"Thank you."

"But you don't have a choice. I'm giving you an order."

"An order? You're not the director of me."

"No, but I am," Coulson spoke up. "_____, we really need to form an alliance with the X-Men. Having them on our side would really help in certain missions. You'll leave first thing in the morning."

You jaw slightly dropped at this. You and Coulson had become friends and you felt you could count on him to have your back. He knew exactly how you felt when it came to speaking to others; to be the diplomat. But now it felt like he was putting SHIELD before that like he did with everything else. Which normally you wouldn't mind - it's what makes Coulson Coulson - but it had taken a lot of prodding from Coulson and a shared bottle of rum before you confided in your discomfort with speaking to crowds. It felt like a betrayal. You knew it wasn't personal, but feelings weren't always rational.

Taking a deep breath, you headed for the door. "Fine. Clearly my opinion doesn't mean dick anyway so why even bother talking about it further. In fact, why did you even bother to have this meeting? You could have just given me my damn orders."

"_____, wait." Coulson made to get up from the table.

But instead of waiting you leave the room, quickly walking down the hall towards your bedroom. From the hall, you could hear Coulson trying to call after you. You just raise your hand to flip him off as you kept walking. The gesture would get you in trouble, but you didn't care at the moment. In your room, you grab the first thing you could reach and hurled it. The pillow made a soft _thud_ against the wall before landing on your desk. Before you could retrieve it, your air vent opened and Hawkeye landed quietly in the middle of the room.

"Now what did that pillow ever do to you?" Clint picked the pillow off the desk and raised an eyebrow at you.

"I'm not in the mood, Hawkbutt." You growled as you grabbed for your pillow, but Clint held it up over his head.

"Ah ah ah! That's no way to talk to your favorite Avenger!" A mischievous smile spread across his face. "I even brought you something."

"What?"

"Nope, first you need to apologize." He smirked at you.

"Fine. I apologize.... for this." You flicked your hand and Clint flew back, landing on your bed. The pillow flew up into your hand.

"Ok just for that, I'm not sharing this ice cream!" He grabbed his bag from the floor and headed back to the vent.

You rolled your eyes. "I'm sorry, Clint. I just came out of a shitty meeting."

"I know. Nat texted me about it." He smiled at you as he fished out a couple of ice cream sandwiches. You went to sit on your bed and he joined you. "So, you wanna tell me what's wrong?"

"Can't talk. Ice cream."

"C'mon! You're practically my little sister. You can tell me anything!"

"Or have Nat uncover it."

"Hey, it was only that one time and it's because I didn't trust that guy you were dating."

"It violated my privacy!"

"But I was right about him!"

"Agree to disagree." You finished your sandwich and grabbed another out of his bag. "Thanks, Clint. I really needed these."

The room was quiet for a few beats before Clint tried again. "What happened in the meeting?"

"Coulson was a butthead." You muttered like a sullen child.

Clint was quiet for a moment again. "Listen, I know you'd rather be locked in a room with Cap while he talks about how everything has changed since the 40s than speak in front of a crowd, but Phil didn't do this to be mean."

"Thanks, Captain Obvious." You began to rip up the ice cream wrapper out of nervous habit. "It's just that literally anyone would have been a better choice."

"Anyone? Even Loki?"

"We both know it'll be a cold day in hell before Coulson assigns Loki anything that won't humiliate the demi-god."

"Point taken. But back to what I was saying: Coulson chose you not only because Xavier did, but because he believes you can do this."

"He is very, very, very wrong." 

"Look, the only thing you're supposed to do tomorrow is speak to the professor. That's it. No speeches to give." You cocked an eyebrow. "Serious! He wants to speak to you first. Then you'll talk to the school."

You snarled at this. "No."

"It doesn't sound like you have much of a choice. And who knows? Maybe you'll meet a guy who Nat and I don't completely hate."

"And maybe I'll sprout glittery fairy wings and fly away."

"Hey, weirder things have happened."

"If you say so."

Clint stood up and grabbed his bag. "Look, just at least talk to Coulson before you leave in the morning. He thinks you're mad at him."

"Because I am."

He sighed. "It's not like it's personal."

"You say that and yet that's exactly how it feels."

"Just please. For me?" Clint climbed back up into the vent.

"No promises." You closed the vent behind him.


	2. Not a Student

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader meets Professor Xavier and his team, the X-Men.

You were in the garage of the compound getting your bike ready for the drive to Westchester County. It would take a few hours so you had gotten up early to pump as much caffeine into you system as humanly possible. Despite Clint’s pleading, you had purposely ignored FRIDAY when she stated that Coulson was looking for you that morning. The sooner you got to the school, the sooner you could return. Coulson could punish you for insubordination later.

“Do you always ignore direct orders?”

“Clearly not, _Director_ , or I’d still be asleep in bed.” You zipped up your leather jacket and threw one leg over the motorcycle. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m late for something that’s as much fun as a root canal.”

Coulson moved so he was directly in front of your bike. “You haven’t been dismissed.”

“You've mistaken me for someone who gave a fuck. Give me my demerits when I get back, Scout Leader.” You go to start the bike, but Coulson quickly pulls the key out. "Hey!"

"We need to talk."

"No, we don't. You want me to go do this stupid thing, then let me or get someone else. I don't have all day for this."

"I'm not doing this to punish you."

"Could have fooled me."

"This will be a great opportunity for you and your career."

"Holy fuck. As if there was any doubt before about your fanboyism, you practically quoting Cap just sealed it." Without even trying, you used your telekinesis to retrieve your keys and move Coulson out of the way. "You clearly don't get it. I confided in you and you turned around and used it against me. Saying its good for my career, like that actually matters to me. I may continue to go on missions for you, but I will never trust any more personal information to you."

"_____, this isn't personal."

"No, it absolutely is. But I'm not surprised. Not the first time SHIELD has done something like this. How do you expect to keep your team if the members don't trust the organization or the people behind it?" You looked up into his eyes. When you had first joined, you had looked up to him. Even had a small crush, though it never went beyond that. But the man had a weird way of getting under your skin. It was one of the few things you and Stark agreed on. You let out a sigh. "I'm outta here. Maybe I'll get lucky and this professor will change his mind after he meets me."

You revved up the bike and rolled past Coulson, out of the garage. Steve and Bucky were on the lawn and they stopped talking to wave at you. You ignored them and opened up the bike, desperately wanting to get this meeting over with. If you had been anyone else, this wouldn't be such a bad thing. But you had hated speaking in front of others ever since you were a kid. The pressure to remember your words, not knowing if you researched enough about the topic at hand, the laughter when you messed up. You weren't like Stark, who could turn a moment like that into a hilarious joke at your expense. You were sarcastic, cynical, and preferred to stand off to the side alone. How you ended up as an Avenger still baffled you.

The road down to Westchester was calming, mostly taking you along the woods. It wasn't long before you were pulling in front of an older looking mansion. You almost thought you were in the wrong spot until you noticed a sign on the gate.

_Xavier's Institute for Higher Learning_

Either Professor Xavier changed the school's name again, or Fury had incomplete intel. Either way, you were clearly in the right spot. You rode through the gate and up to the front steps. A large man covered head to toe in metal came out of the door to greet you in a thick Russian accent.

"Hello! You must be the Avenger. I am Piotr, though most call me Colossus."

"Nice to meet you, Colossus. I'm _____ _____, though sometimes my teammates call me Hecate."

"After the Greek goddess of magic?"

"Yeah, well I was called a witch when I was a kid so I thought I'd at least roll with it." You climbed off your bike and shook the metal hand extended towards you. "Nice school you guys have here."

"Thank you. The professor will be happy to hear that." Just then, two more men busted out of the front door. One was in a head-to-toe red and black suit and was being followed by the other, who had some metal parts to the left side of his body. It almost reminded you of Bucky, except somehow this looked more organic.

"Get back here, you giant dildo!" The one with the metal arm shouted. 

"Fuck you, old man!" The first man was running straight for you. Without thinking, you threw up a telekinetic barrier and guy bounced right off. "Fuck sticks!"

"Wade, Nathan, that is no way to act in front of our guest." Piotr chastised the two men as he reached down to yank the first man off the ground. "Now, come and say hello to _____."

The man with the metal arm just grunted at you. "Cable."

"I'm guessing that's either your name or you're a metal version of Hodor." You quipped.

The other man busted out laughing as he dangled from Piotr's grip. "Oh fuck yes! Calling you Hodor from now on, old man! You can carry me around in a bag around your neck."

Cable sneered and walked back into the mansion. Colossus placed the man on the ground. “Now Wade, we need to be on our best behavior when guests come to the school.”

The mask on Wade’s face actually rolled its eyes. “Oh please. Like she actually gives a shit. She looks bored out of her goddamn mind right now. Why don’t we get out of here, hot stuff, and let the metal man have fun alone?”

You flicked a hand at Wade and he flew across the yard. “Hard pass. I don’t want to be here, but I might as well get this fuckery over with.”

Colossus looked at you in confusion. "You don't want to be here? The professor said that the Avengers wanted this merger."

"That could all and well be true, but coming to the school was not my idea in the slightest. If it's alright with you, I'd like to go ahead and meet the professor so I can head back to the compound. No doubt next time they'll be smart enough to send someone more diplomatic."

He looked at you thoughtfully and then nodded his head. "Please, come this way."

Inside the school, kids were darting all around trying to get to class on time. A man covered head-to-toe in blue fur and wearing a suit strolled by. "Good morning, Piotr. Who's our lovely guest?"

"This is _____ _____ from the Avengers. She is here to talk to Professor Xavier."

"Ah! I was wondering when the Avengers would come knocking at our door. Pleased to meet you. I'm Dr Hank McCoy."

You shake his hand, yours lost in his larger one. "Nice to meet you, Doctor. I assume you're a teacher here?"

"As well as the man who helps create every item the X-Men use in the field. You're just in time. Charles is finishing with a meeting right now. I'll be glad to take you to his office."

"Thank you, Dr McCoy."

"Please, call me Hank." He led you down a few hallways before stopping in front of a pair of French doors. A voice called out from the other side.

"It's quite alright, Hank. We're finished in here."

You jerked your head back as Hank chuckled. "The professor is a telepath. Not to mention, he has been looking forward to your visit."

"He has?"

"Yes, but I will let him go into as to why that is." Hank opened the doors to reveal a beautifully furnished office.

An older man sat behind a large desk, a kind smile on his face. In front of the desk sat two men: one wearing red tinted sunglasses and dressed a little preppy and the other bearded and looked to be on his way to Canada to be a lumberjack. The second man turned as you walked into the room and your eyes locked with his green ones. He was very handsome in a rugged sort of way and you had a hard time pulling your eyes away from his to look back at the professor.

You cleared your throat. "Professor Xavier, please excuse the interruption. I've been sent here by the Avengers and SHIELD to speak with you."

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw the rugged man roll his eyes. "Great. Since when have they decided to stick their nose in our business?"

"Logan, this could be a good thing. Having the Avengers as allies would help in future battles against other mutants, like Magneto." The man in the sunglasses reasoned.

The one called Logan just shook his head. "You know that's stupid, Scott. Iron Man would be just as useless as me against Magneto. He'd get crushed like a beer can. We don't need their help. We've worked fine without it."

"Then maybe they're reaching out so Captain America's positive attitude will rub off on you."

"Wasn't he a war criminal? How good of a role model could he possibly be? Sorry," he turned towards you, "I'm sure like every girl that swoons over him, you believe he was in the right and all that shit. But at times he seems like an idiot."

You cocked an eyebrow at Logan. "Look, I have no idea who peed in your Wheaties this morning, but you haven't offended me once. Well, with the exception of thinking I have the hots for Rogers. He's too much of a boy scout for my taste. I'm no more thrilled to be here than apparently you are at having me here. This was Nick Fury's brain child so go bitch to him. In the meantime, I would like to pick the professor's brain as to why I was volunteered as tribute for this idiocy. So if you're done being a crotchety old man, I would like to have a moment alone with him."

On the other side of you, Scott's face broke out into a wide grin. "Oh, I like her. Professor, can we keep her around?"

Logan raised his eyebrows at you, but remained silent. Hank chuckled. "Well, I believe that is the first time Logan has been rendered without a response. Come along, gentlemen. These two have much to discuss."

The two men got out of their seats and headed towards the door. You felt eyes on your back and looked over your shoulder to see Logan looking at you as the doors closed. He had a look of interest on his face and something was telling you this wouldn't be the last time you would see him.


	3. Figure of Speech

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Professor Xavier tells Reader why he picked her.

"Please, Miss _____. Have a seat." Professor Xavier gestured to a now empty chair. "We have much to discuss."

You took Logan's old seat and let out a sigh. "I want to apologize for the way I spoke to Logan. Clearly I will do so to him as well, but I want you to know that's not..." you sigh again and lick your lips. "That was not a proper representation of the Avengers. I've.... I've had a rough 24 hours and I took my anger of someone else out on him."

"I know." There was a smile on his kind face. "And don't worry about Logan. If anything, I believe he was impressed with how well you returned the verbal sparring. And I know you did not want to be the one to come here today."

"Then why did you ask for me? I'm not exactly approved for public consumption as you just saw."

"Because it's what your parents wanted."

"I'm sorry, what? My parents?" Your jaw dropped in shock. Your parents had died when you were a teenager and as far as you knew didn't know many people outside of the town you had grown up in. 

"Yes, they were former students of mine. That's why they wanted you to come to school here."

"My parents were mutants?! But they never.... I didn't...." Your brain tried to work around the shock of receiving this new information.

"I know this is not how you wanted to discover this information and frankly I am saddened that they kept it from you. They were some of my best students and some of the best X-Men."

"Wait, what?!"

Xavier turned to pluck a framed photo from a side table to his left. He held it out for you to look at. You cautiously reached for the photo, your eyes drinking in the scene before you. "They graduated top of their class and went on to fight alongside myself, Hank, and even Logan at one point. Though no one but Hank and I knew they were your parents."

"Wait, Logan fought alongside them? He doesn't really look that old."

Charles chuckled. "He's actually older than you think. Even older than myself."

Your eyes went wide at that. "Welp, ok. So.... what could my parents do?"

"Your mother was a telepath, like myself and another who works and lives here. Your father could create force fields around himself and larger groups. They were both invaluable during missions."

Looking down at the photo, your parents smiled up happily at you. The style of X-Men suits and their hair gave you an idea as to when the photo was taken. "They were killed on a mission, weren't they? It wasn't really a plane crash, was it?"

"I'm afraid it was a plane crash. This photo was taken two days before they left for Mexico. Magneto used his powers to pull down their plane."

You closed your eyes and a single tear dropped onto the glass. "They... they missed my high school play because they said there were unavoidable plans for work they personally had to attend to. I was so mad at them; said some real nasty things before they left. I guess I've never really forgiven myself. But I wish they had just told me the truth. They knew I was a mutant and they wanted me to go to school here. Clearly I would have found out had I chosen to listen to them."

"I know this must all be a shock to you, to find out your parents weren't who you thought they were. But just know they were good people and they've raised a good daughter."

You sniffed and wiped away the tear. "And how do you know? Yeah, they were good people but look at their mess of a daughter. I may have managed to get on the Avengers, but I'm not much of a team player."

"Things like that take time. You've been hurt in your past, so naturally it won't be easy for you to open yourself up to people."

"And I sure as hell won't do it anymore. The one time I did, it landed me here."

"I'm sure Director Coulson didn't mean any harm. I've heard you have great respect for him."

"Had." You put the photo back on Charles' desk. His eyes bore into yours and you sighed. "Ok, so I still do. But it was still shit what he did. If you just wanted to talk about my parents, there were other ways to go about it. Acting like I had to put on a presentation to your students was the worse way."

"But it wasn't an act. I would like to have the Avengers speak with the students soon. Specifically, you. Your dear mother had an amazing ability to charm the crowd whenever she spoke. I always teased her it had to do with her telepathy."

"I'm sorry but I clearly didn't inherit the ability to speak coherently in front of large groups." You give him a tired smirk. "Maybe it was her mutation, after all."

Charles laughed. "Maybe it was. I don't expect you to answer right away. Please feel free to tour the school. I can have Hank or Piotr show you around and introduce you to the staff and remaining X-Men members."

"Thank you, Professor. I would like that." You stand up and shake his hand. "Again, very sorry for the first impression that I made."

"Not at all. If anything, it just proves you're your father's daughter."

"My dad was like me?! He never acted like that at home."

"No, I imagine he wouldn't. He had you and your mother to keep the cynicism and sarcasm at bay. But at the school...." Charles chuckled again, "he was quite the cut up."

You smile and shake your head. "It's so hard for me to picture. Thank you, for that. I better get going on this tour."

Walking out of the office and down the hall, you look around for someone to show you the grounds. But instead of Hank or Piotr, you come across Logan again. You couldn't help but feel annoyed at seeing him sitting so casually in one of the many plush chairs you had seen around the school. He was so relaxed and in the sunlight he looked more handsome than you had noticed the first time. No one had any right looking that good so effortlessly. You resisted the urge to sigh, and instead quietly approached his chair.

"Excuse me," his green eyes immediately turned on you and you almost lost your train of thought. What the hell was wrong with you? You weren't one to lose your head over some guy. "I just wanted to apologize for what I said earlier today. My anger was misplaced."

A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "It's alright, kid. I didn't exactly start our meeting off on the right foot. I've just never been the biggest Avengers fan."

You nodded your head and smiled, which seemed to surprise him. "Yeah, that's completely understandable. Especially after all the mistakes the team has made over the years. Sometimes I even wonder why I'm still there."

"Why are you still there?"

"Oddly enough, they've become like a makeshift family for me. I lost my parents while I was still in high school and my aunt was actually friends with a few SHIELD agents. I wasn't the typical kid who took dance class or tried to run for student council; I chose to take martial art classes instead. Needless to say, I didn't have many friends in school. But it got me into SHIELD and from there the Avengers. Though my powers are probably more the reason why."

"What are your powers?"

Your smile became a smirk as the glass on the table next to him lifted into the air and into your hand. You take a sniff of the glass before sending it back. "Whiskey, huh? I'm a rum girl myself."

A genuine smile broke out across his face. "So you're telekinetic? How come you didn't go to school here?"

You shrug your shoulders. "Maybe I wasn't ready to face what I am. I tried to so hard to fit in and it never worked out."

"That's usually how life works out. So how come you're still here? I thought you'd want to bolt after talking to the professor?"

"Well, I'm supposed to find Hank or Piotr so I can have a tour of the campus, but I have no idea where to look for them."

He nodded his head and got out of his seat. "Well don't worry about the fur ball or tin man. I'll show you around and then if you want, we can grab a drink somewhere as an apology to each other."

You couldn't help but smile at his offer. "That sounds great."

Logan shows you around the school, expertly pointing out where the classes were kept, the dorm rooms could be found, and the staff room. Along the way you briefly met Jean, Ororo, Yukio, and Ellie, some who were teachers, others students, all X-Men. When you reached the front of the school again, you walked over to your bike.

"Nice Harley." Logan was clearly impressed. "Looks like a classic."

"Well it's a 1976, so it's older, but I don't know about it being a classic." You watched as Logan circled the bike. "It was my dad's so it's at most a hand-me-down."

He looked up at the smile on your face. "Awfully nice of him."

The smile faltered. "Well, I technically inherited it. He wasn't big on me riding, but there was no way in hell I was going to sell it."

Logan decided to change the subject. "Let me grab my bike and I can show you that dive bar I mentioned earlier."

Your smile came back. "Can't wait."


	4. Give It A Chance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader and Logan grab a few drinks before Reader heads home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Glad to be back from vacation! Let's get this story done!

Logan grabbed a couple of drinks at the bar before leading you to a table in the corner. You gave him a quiet thank you before taking a sip. The two of you sat in a comfortable silence for a few moments while you took in the look of the bar. As you looked around, you could feel Logan’s eyes on you.

You glanced at him and smirked. “What? Is there beer foam on my face?”

Logan chuckled. “No.”

You leaned back in your chair and turned to look at him. You tried not to get distracted, but he - once again - looked at ease and it was hard not to notice how handsome he was as he just sat there across from you. "So, no offence, but why do you work at the school? You don't exactly strike me as the teacher type."

Logan chuckled again. "Yeah, I can see that. I won't bore you with the whole story, but I came across the school on accident. Charles was a big help in getting my life back together so I decided to stay and help him."

"The place must mean a lot to you."

"It means a lot to a lot of people. And it's all because of Charles. He started this school so mutants could have a place to just be themselves and helps them in any way possible."

"He sounds like quite a person. I wish I had listened to my parents and come to school here when I was younger."

"Your parents actually wanted you to attend a mutant school? Most parents I know of want to hide what their kid can do."

You sighed and dragged your finger around the rim of your glass. "Yeah, I was confused as to why they kept pushing it. It never made any sense, until the Professor just informed me that not only were my parents mutants, they were former students and X-Men."

Logan did a double take. "Your parents were X-Men? What were their names?" You tell him. "They were your parents?! They didn't seem like the kind to have kids. Uh-"

"No offense taken," you laugh, cutting him off. "In all fairness, they never seemed cool enough to me to be X-Men, so there is that. They were amazing at hiding who they were, apparently."

"I remember the last mission they were supposed to go on. They didn't really seem like they had their head in the game."

"That would be my fault. We got into a nasty fight before they left and I always felt it was my fault they died." You tried to shrug it off. "Guess that makes me perfect for the Avengers."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, as you've no doubt seen with our team leaders, it's act first worry about the consequences second. So many of the team's mistakes could have been avoided if some people took the time to remove their heads from their asses."

Logan was laughing again. "I can't believe you talk about your teammates this way."

You smiled. "Eh, it's out of love. Well, except that whole issue with the Accords. I almost lost my second family due to Cap's tunnel vision. Though in his defense, Stark wasn't any more mature about finding a solution."

"I remember hearing about that. So whose side were you on?"

You smirked. "Stark's. It made the most sense. We needed to be regulated as a team. Though, I do think Secretary Ross had to remember that what happened in New York wasn't the team's fault. Just the mess we didn't clean up afterwards."

"What about the other incidents?"

"D.C. was really SHIELD's fault, as much as I hate to admit it. But they were so busy believing they were the good guys, they forgot to double check their own ranks. Sokovia sure as hell was Stark's fault. And Lagos was Cap's fault."

"How so?"

"His friend Bucky had been on his mind ever since he found out he was the Winter Soldier. Rumlow mentioned his name while talking to Cap, and Cap dropped the ball. Almost got his ass blown to Mars. Makes it hard to follow his lead sometimes when moments like that stick out in your memory. For the most part, he's a helluva leader. But until the moment Bucky was un-brainwashed, Steve always had half of his thoughts elsewhere. It lead to some dangerous situations."

Logan nodded his head, keeping his eyes on you. The look made you feel warm all over and sent butterflies in your stomach. You had never been one to fall not only so quickly, but so deeply for someone. The other guys you dated lasted a month at most and they sure as hell never made you feel so excited as Logan did. You couldn't understand it; you barely knew the guy. Maybe it was the dangerous, yet protective edge Logan seemed to possess or how easy it seemed to talk to him.

He finally spoke again. "How did choosing Stark's side affect your relationship with the other Avengers?"

You rolled your eyes. "It was interesting. Cap and I were never too close so that wasn't affected too much. But Sam and I were good friends and it hurt to see him on the other side of the fight, though I understood why. Same with Wanda. She wanted to be free, but she walked a dangerous line: she wasn't a citizen at the time and was seen as very dangerous. Tony just wanted to keep her safe. Never knew of Ant Man and was kinda mad at Sam for not mentioned him sooner. And as for Clint and Nat...." you sighed. "They've been the closest to me as they were also SHIELD agents before becoming Avengers. Nat was the sister I always wanted and Clint was the older brother I needed. At first I was only fighting against Clint, but then Nat changed sides, too. We had a long, drunken talk about it once our team was back under the same roof again. They hated that they had to leave me, but understood why I stayed."

"Sounds like you got a good group around you."

You nodded your head. "Yeah, I'm really lucky with those two. In fact, I should probably head back soon. Knowing Clint, he's probably worried I haven't returned yet and called the mansion."

"But Charles would tell him you left with me."

Your eyes widened for a second before you got your face under control. "He would tell Clint that?"

"Yeah, why not?"

Remaining calm, you lifted your drink to your mouth, but didn't take a sip as you tilted your head back. You only risked a glance, but you saw the tattle-tale sign of Clint hiding in the vent of the bar - the slightest dip in the exposed metal tube. You set your drink back down and spoke without moving your lips. "Well, for one thing: it would cause Clint to come here looking for me. Which he has. Don't respond. He can read lips."

Logan instead took a sip of his beer. "Alone?"

You casually glanced around the room again and spotted Nat sitting at the bar, almost hidden in a brunette wig. "No."

Logan chuckled. "Well, then you better head back to the compound before the big, bad Avengers come for me."

You had no idea what Logan's mutation was, but you were confident that he could handle himself against the dynamic duo. A thing you _never_ thought of anyone. "Good idea. Would hate to have to drag them back to the compound in pieces. Thanks for the drink, Logan, and the tour of the school. It was fun."

"No problem, kid. Hit me up if you ever need company that won't drive you nuts."

You broke into a wide smile. "It's a deal."

After you finished your drink, you gave Logan a small wave before heading out to your bike. You delayed leaving to give Nat and Clint a chance to catch up. "You know, I do have my standard issued Stark Industries phone on me. You could have just sent a text."

Nat smirked as she walked up, Clint following behind her brushing the dust from the vent off of his pants. "Now where would be the fun in that? So who's the dangerously sexy man you were having a drink with just now?"

"Nat!" Clint looked at her in horror, "this is our sister! Can we not encourage this?"

"Um, excuse me? Weren't you the one who said maybe I would meet someone you and Nat didn't hate at the school?"

"Yeah, but I never thought you'd actually meet anyone."

"Thanks, Clint." You climbed onto the bike. "His name is Logan and he's one of the teachers at the school. And it was just a drink as an apology since we were both kinda bitchy to each other when we first met."

"Sure it was." Nat winked at you. 

"Oh my god, Nat! Get that look off your face!"

"What look?" She smiled innocently. 

"That look where I know damn well you're going to try to play match maker."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"I don't even know the guy!"

"That's what dates are for! Now c'mon. We gotta get home so you and Coulson can apologize to each other."

You sighed and stared your bike. "Why do I even bother with you guys?"

Nat climbed on behind you. "Because you love us."

"Hey, how am I supposed to get back?"

Nat shrugged. "Take back my bike. Duh!"

"See ya at the compound!" You laughed as you raced off on the bike.


	5. No Damsel In Distress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader is out on a mission with the Avengers and the X-Men.

Back at the compound, you ditched your bike in the garage and began to search around for Coulson as Nat stayed behind to make sure Clint returned her bike in one piece. Sure you were still mad at him for saying you should speak before the school, but without having gone there you wouldn't have found out the truth about your parents. Nor would you have met Logan. You still weren't keen on having to eventually give this speech, but for now you could shake hands and make-up.

"So, you survived the visit." You turned around to see Phil Coulson walking towards you from one of the conference rooms. He had that slight smile of his on his face as he walked quickly towards you. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"Don't start with me, Coulson. Just because I'm glad to finally learn about my parents doesn't mean I'm not still sore about you volunteering me as tribute." You poked him in the chest as you made your point.

He just smiled at you. "You understand why I did it, though."

"No, I really don't. If this was about my parents, you should have said so to begin with instead of doing all your secret agent back talk. At least then I would still be made about the upcoming speech, but would have understood why it had to be me. You just seemingly picking me at random after I had confessed my fear felt more like a punch in the gut." You took a deep breath and tried to remind yourself you were going to play nice. "But again, I am grateful to finally learn about my parents. Just.... can you be more open with me next time?"

"You allowed your emotions to get the better of you." Clearly Coulson wasn't going to make this easy.

"Oh don't start that bullshit! You're not a robot, Coulson, and neither am I. Come back to me when you want to speak to me like a person and not some mindless drone." You turned to walk away, but Phil put his hand on your shoulder.

"You're right. I'm used to dealing with Nat who prefers missions to be dealt with in this manner. Not that she's a robot, she just prefers to know the basics and that's it unless it's a matter of life or death." 

You nodded your head. "Thank you for acknowledging that. I know you mean well, but dammit man, you need to work on your execution."

This time Phil let out a chuckle. "I'll try to remember that. So what took you so long getting home? Clint and Natasha became worried and left to fetch you."

"More like left to spy on her." Nat smirked as she walked on by. "We have an upcoming mission, ____, but afterwards don't think for one moment you're getting out of my evil plan."

Phil looked at you in confusion. "Evil plan?"

You just shook your head. "I met one of the teachers and we were kinda douches to each other-"

"There's that winning personality of yours."

You narrowed your eyes at Coulson and continued. "So after my tour of the school, we went to the bar to have a drink in an effort of a truce. That's where they were spying on me. Nat wants to set me up with him."

"An X-Men?" You nodded your head. "What does he do?"

"Despite popular belief, when two mutants meet we're not like when dogs see each other in public. We make normal small talk and earn each other's trust a majority of the time."

"And why's that?"

"Some mutations aren't worth bragging about. Some could potentially harm someone without even trying. So we wait until that person's willing to bring it up. Though from what I gather, he at least has super healing. According to the Professor, Logan's been around longer than even him."

"Gee, ____, if I knew you were into older guys I would have asked you out."

You rolled your eyes. "Oh please. Like we could have dated longer than a week without one of us disappearing mysteriously."

Coulson chuckled at the thought. "Good point." He checked his watch. "Looks like you have about an hour before the debriefing about the upcoming mission Natasha mentioned. Why don't you grab a quick bite to eat and I'll meet you in the conference room."

"Sure thing, Coulson." You wandered off until you ended up in the compound's kitchen where a few of your teammates gathered. "Hey guys."

Rhodey nodded his head in your direction while Sam just waved. Tony got a mischievous smile on his face and you immediately wanted to leave the room. "So, Nat tells me you finally met someone."

"Sweet zombie J-"

"There's a kid in the room!" Stark pointed above your head.

You looked up and smiled. "Hey, Parker."

Peter waved from his spot in the corner of the ceiling. "Hi, Miss _____."

You turned back to Stark. "To answer your question, no. I just got a tour from one of the teachers at the school and then we had a drink afterwards."

Clint came mumbling into the room. "Nat's crazy. That guy looks like he's bad news."

"How bad can he be if he's a teacher?"

"Not helping, Stark!"

"Can we please stop talking about my love life?!"

"Don't you have to have one first in order for us to talk about it?" Stark wiggled his eyebrows at you.

"Odd choice of dying words." You looked over at Tony and slowly started making his cup of coffee wander away from him. He went to reach for it and did a double take when his hand came up empty. He reached for the cup again, only for you to move it away faster.

"Dammit, ____! I need my caffeine!"

"Sucks to be you." Laughing, you walked out of the room, the cup floating behind you. Stark's footsteps followed quickly behind, so you picked up the pace using your mutation to keep the coffee in the mug. 

In the conference room, Coulson and Fury looked up to see you dash in with a floating mug behind you. Fury shook his head. "What did Stark do this time?"

"Not important," you laughed as you took your seat, setting Stark's mug on the other side of the table.

Tony was a few minutes behind you, breathing hard from trying to keep up. He glared in your direction as he took the seat where you had set his cup. Clint, Nat, and Steve followed shortly behind. Fury cleared his throat.

"If y'all are done screwing around, there's a mission you guys need to leave on first thing in the morning. There have been reports of a group called the Brotherhood causing trouble along the Canadian border."

"The Brotherhood?" You looked at Fury in confusion. "That's a mutant terrorist group. Shouldn't this be handled by the X-Men?"

"Funny you should mentioned them. You're doing this mission with the X-Men. You'll be meeting them on the US side of the border and head together to where the Brotherhood was last seen. You, Stark, Rogers, Barton, and Romanov will be the ones to leave on this mission."

"Wouldn't it make more sense if it was myself, Wanda, Vision, and Thor? We're going against mutants."

"Normally I would agree, but Thor's in Norway dealing with his people and Wanda and Vision are already leaving on a different mission with Wilson and Barnes. Hence why you're meeting with the X-Men. You guys will leave at dawn to meet the other team."

Fury briefed you on a few more vital points before dismissing your group. The next morning, you boarded the Quinjet with your team for the short flight to the boarder. You were going over the dossier with Stark reading over your shoulder.

"You better hope this Magneto isn't with the group, Tony, or you'll get crushed like a beer can. If he's there, I'll try to keep him distracted while you guys take out the others with the X-Men's help."

"Do you think your friend will be helping you?"

You playfully shoved Stark away. "Doubtful. If I remember correctly, he said he was just as useless against Magneto as you would be. So he must have a metal plate on him or something like that. Or maybe he's like Bucky and has a metal limb. Who knows? Just try to keep a safe distance if Magneto is there. I really don't want to explain to Pepper why you look like you got caught in a trash compactor."

"Wouldn't be the worst thing she's been told about me."

Clint landed the Quinjet and your group exited to find the X-Men already waiting for your team. You recognized the mutants waiting for your group and introduced them. 

"This is Logan, Scott, Jean, Ororo, and Ellie." You gestured to each one and then did the same with your own team. Each group nodded at each other. "So what's the plan?"

Scott spoke up, "you, Jean, Ororo, and Ellie will head off to capture Magneto while the rest of us deal with the remaining members of his group. Signal us if anything goes wrong and either I or Captain Rogers will come help."

Steve spoke up. "Won't my shield be an issue?"

"The Professor told me it's made out of vibranium and Magneto can't control it so you should be fine. But we need you with our group more at first."

Steve nodded and Logan spoke to you. "We'll be heading south of here to head off the group while your team heads east to intercept Magneto."

"Hopefully this won't take long. My team has never gone against mutants except during training." You smirked at your team.

Clint laughed. "Yeah, but you cheat."

"No, I use my mutation and so will they so stay sharp." You look over at Logan. “Keep my team safe. I still owe you a drink, but you’ll never get it if someone ends up missing a limb.”

Logan smiled at you. Stark cut in. “Why are you guys the ones in charge? We’re not new at this.”

You sighed. “Tony...”

Logan produced metal claws from his fist and you immediately understood why he wasn’t fighting Magneto. “Listen, bub, I’ve been fighting other mutants long before you were even born and we’ve been fighting Magneto long before you even made that metal suit of yours. This is one area where you’re not the go to for strategy.”

Not wanting a fight before the mission could even start, you flicked your hand in Tony’s direction and he flew back a few feet. “Not now, Stark. This is the one time I’m not looking to your or Cap on what to do next. They clearly have more experience in this matter.”

Tony frowned at you, but tapped his nanotech casing so his suit would form. “Fine. Let’s get this over with.”

Your groups split off and you followed Jean into the forest. It was eerily quiet with the only sounds being your footsteps. You fell in step with Ellie and soon you were talking about what each person’s mutation was so you knew who could handle what. Your conversation was cut off by what sounded like Logan screaming.

Jean’s eyes went wide. “Magneto stayed with his group.”

You didn’t hesitate to use your powers to fly towards the direction of the noise, Jean and Ororo in the air right behind you. You reached an opening to find most of your group fighting mutants while an older gentleman pointed on hand at Logan holding him up in the air. The other hand was pointed at Tony, who was losing nanotech armor as fast as it could form.

Without hesitating, you pointed both hands at the older man and sent him flying. As the others went to help the Avengers, you dashed over to Logan and slid on your knee so you were by his side. Tony managed to get a suit over himself and came to your side.

“Logan, are you ok? What happened?!” You pulled him into a sitting position with Stark’s help.

“No offence, but you’re way heavier than you look.”

“Tony!”

“Well he is!”

“It’s my skeleton. It’s covered in adamantium. Magneto was trying to pull it very slowly from my body.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Logan. I was merely trying to get your attention.”

You looked up to see Magneto walking back to your group. Just as he pointed a hand in your direction, you had a telekinetic barrier around your small group. Logan braced for the pain to return, but opened his eyes when nothing happened. Magneto flexed his hand, but still Tony and Logan stayed put. You gave a faint smile in Magneto’s direction.

“Well, it looks like you have a protector.”

“The one who needs a protector is you.” Your smile grew wider as you saw Ellie sneak up from behind. Soon she sent off one of her energy blasts, sending Magneto flying into Jean’s direction. She used her telekinesis to hold him still so Scott could put a collar around his neck.

Looking over, you saw Clint and Nat putting cuffs on the other mutants and heard Steve tell Ororo about the ones that might have gotten away.

You glanced at Tony. “Is it just me or was that mission oddly quick?”

“Very quick. But you won’t hear me complain.” He looked over at the X-Men. “Not that this wasn’t fun, but I’ll have to pass on our next get together. I can only produce so much nanotech at a time.”

Logan chuckled as he pulled himself to his feet before helping you up. “Thanks for the help, kid. Guess I owe you.”

Before you could respond, Nat shouted from behind you. “Taking her to dinner is a good way to say thanks!”

You tried to fight the blush rising to your face. “Jesus Christ, Nat! I thought spies were supposed to be subtle.”

Logan smiled. “Actually, she has a good point. What do ya say, kid? Free this weekend?”

You tried to ignore Nat’s huge smile and Clint’s desperate attempt to signal ‘no’ at you. “Just name the time and place.”


	6. Night Out Or In?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan tries to take Reader on a date, but they end up changing their plans at the last minute.

That weekend, Logan swung by the compound to pick you up for your date. You were walking down the hall from your room to the main lounge and could hear the unmistakable sound of someone quickly crawling through the air ducts behind you.

"Dammit, Clint! Can you please drop this!" You stopped under the first ac grate you came across. "It's only dinner! I'll be back soon enough."

"But that's not soon enough!" Came his muffled reply.

"Why do you care? Aren't you and Nat going to spy on me anyway?"

"No. Nat said I wasn't allowed to." You could hear the pout he was trying to hide.

You sighed and closed your eyes. "Why are you being this way? I thought you wanted me to find someone."

He moved so you could see his eyes through the grate. "I do, but.... like, can't it be someone we already know? Someone who, maybe, didn't murder people in his past. Who's not a criminal? Like Scott!"

You narrowed your eyes and pursed your lips. "Scott Lang? The one who was arrested for stealing from his old company? The one who was arrested for breaking into Hank Pym's house? The one that spent time on the floating raft prison with you after Germany before undergoing house arrest? That Scott? He's not a criminal?"

He was silent for a few beats. "Ok, maybe I didn't think that one through. Though he isn't a mur- ok, he kinda is. However, getting rid of the Yellow Jacket doesn't really count as murder. But I couldn't suggest Phil. You two would kill each other. And you're not exactly Cap's type."

"Not going to argue either point, frankly. Clint, come down here."

"Why?"

"Because I feel we should be having this conversation face to face." You stepped away from the grate and waited until Clint stood in front of you. "Look, you're my brother, and I value your opinion, but you have got to relax. If the Professor trusts him, then you can, too."

"The Professor also trusted Magneto at one point. Look how well that turned out."

"He wore a helmet to keep his thoughts a secret. Logan doesn't really have that luxury." You sighed and looked down the hall, wondering if Tony was giving Logan the third degree while waiting for you to show up. Clearly Clint wasn't going to let go so easily. He and Nat had known you since you joined SHIELD at 18 and had been fiercely protective of you since. Maybe it would be best to compromise for now. "How about this? Instead of going out, I'll take Logan to one of the guest wings and he and I can make dinner there. That way you can still spy if you want, or if Nat still won't let you, you'll know FRIDAY will alert you if anything goes wrong."

He looked down at his boots and then at your face. Clint knew you were trying to throw him a bone and that he was being a bit unfair about the whole thing. But he couldn't help it. You were family to him.

Finally, he let out a loud sigh. "Fine. I clearly can't talk you out of this and I guess it could be worse. You could have a crush on Loki."

You started laughing. "I mean, when you put it that way, I always wanted to be a queen."

"Don't look at me to start bowing at you."

"Just as long as you bend the knee eventually."

Both of you were now practically on the floor with laughter at the idea of a former SHIELD agent dating the demigod. Tony shouted down the hallway. "What the hell is going on in there?!"

Wiping the tears from your face, you helped Clint back into the vent. "Nothing, Stark."

You jogged down the rest of the hallway and into the main lounge. Nat, Tony, and Wanda were sitting on the couches and Vision was in the chair closest to Wanda. Logan was standing near the entrance, looking a little uncomfortable. And he kept sneaking glances at the ceiling. You furrowed your eyebrows and followed his gaze. Parker was walking on the ceiling, looking at his phone as he headed towards the attached kitchen.

"Pete," his head jerked and he looked at you. "What did Tony say about walking on the ceiling when we have guests over?"

Parker noticed Logan for the first time and blushed. "Oh! Sorry, Mr. Stark. Sorry, Miss ____. I didn't see we had company."

He gracefully flipped off the ceiling and landed on his toes before continuing on his path to the fridge. You smiled and shook your head as you walked over to Logan. "That couldn't have been the weirdest thing you've seen."

"No, I've definitely seen weirder. But as much as I live in a school full of mutant kids, none of them have the ability to walk upside down. Definitely wasn't expecting that."

"Yeah, that took some getting used to when the kid first joined our team." Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Wanda furiously writing on a pad of paper while Nat and Tony discreetly stole glances at it. Damn mind readers. Whatever was going through Logan's head, she was making sure the others didn't miss out. "Listen, I know we had talked about going out to dinner, but what if we went somewhere to cook ourselves? That way we could talk freely without people judging."

Logan contemplated you offer for a moment. "Where did you have in mind?"

"There are a couple of guest quarters off to the end of the compound. They usually have a pretty stocked kitchen." You tried desperately to ignore the teammates to your right that were practically bouncing on the couch like children. This is why you rarely dated and when you did, why you never brought the poor guy to the compound.

"Sounds like a plan. Lead the way."

Ignoring Tony and his wiggling eyebrows, you turned and lead Logan out of the room and across the compound. At the guest quarters, you placed your hand on a scanner and pushed the door open.

“You guys have high security locks on your guest quarters?"

"We didn't used to, but Parker invited his friend, Ned, over one day and-"

"Let me guess? Teenage house party?"

You laughed. "Normally you'd be correct, but in this case Parker tried to use one of the quarters for secret experiments to enhance his webbing. He mixed the wrong chemicals..... and well, let's just say Peter can't go to certain parts of the compound without adult supervision anymore."

"And he's an Avenger?"

"Look, he may be a teenager, but he can lift a bus and web up bad guys pretty good. He just needs to grow a little."

In the spacious kitchen, you and Logan began to scour the fridge and cabinets to assess what ingredients you had available. Soon you were working together to make a meal. You had found a bottle of rum and whiskey so you both had a glass while you were cooking. The casual environment mixed with the liquor helped to loosen you both up and soon the conversation was flowing.

"Why did you become an Avenger?" Logan questioned while you sat at the table together.

"Seemed like the logical step after being an agent for SHIELD. I mean, I am a mutant."

"Then why not become an X-Men?"

You gave a teasing smile. "Mad you haven't met me sooner?"

He chuckled. "Can't say that would have been a bad thing."

"So why do you hate the Avengers?" You were making your second rum and coke as you finished your meal.

"I just felt that at times you guys feel like you're infallible. Like any past discrepancies didn't matter."

"Well, luckily for you that can sometimes be the case." Logan cocked an eyebrow at you. "You have quite the reputation, Wolverine. So much so my brother from another mother wanted me to cancel our date all together. But I don't scare so easily and your past doesn't bother me. So I compromised and moved our date he so he'd feel better. And so he wouldn't try to sneak into the restaurant in a shitty disguise."

Logan placed his empty plate in the sink and moved so he was a few inches from you. "I don't scare you?"

You smirked. "Who's afraid of the big, bad wolf?"

"I'm a dangerous man."

"And I'm no princess waiting to be saved. I've been to hell and back with this team, lost people in my life, and fought against Thanos and his army. All while keeping my mind intact." You tilted your head up towards him. "You. Don't. Scare. Me."

There was a growl in his chest and soon he was crushing his lips to yours. You wrapped your arms around his neck and hungrily returned the kiss. Logan grabbed you around the waist and lifted you so you sat on the counter top, your legs wrapped around him. The both of you remained like that for a few minutes before you came up for air.

"So, do these quarters have a bed anywhere?"

"Damn straight, they do." He lifted you up and carried you off in the direction you pointed.

A few hours later, you walked back into the main part of the compound after walking Logan to his bike. Tony, Nat, Wanda, and Clint were gathered around the sofas drinking beer. You tried to sneak past, but right as you were about to exit the room Tony stood up to grab the group more drinks.

"There she is!" Tony cried out.

 _Dammit, not fast enough,_ you cringed mentally. "Hey guys."

Nat had a smile like a cat that ate the canary. "Sooooooooo........ how was dinner? You guys were in there for an awful long time."

You took a deep breath to keep your face from turning red. "Yeah, well once we started talking we lost track of the time."

Wanda began to grin in a way that made Clint uncomfortable. "Uh, sis? That was all, right? No kiss goodnight or anything?"

"Oh Clint. Dear, sweet, naive Clint." Nat chuckled. "Just look at Wanda's face. She's  _clearly_ reading something good."

"Ok, it's bedtime! Night guys!" You shouted as your ran out of the room. Just as you rounded the corner, you head Clint's cry of pain.

"Why did you tell me?!" You couldn't help but chuckle as you closed your bedroom door.


	7. Giving In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader and Logan map out the next steps of their relationship.

"So you're actually going to do it?" Logan handed you a drink. You were stretched out on a lawn chair that was placed on one of the upper balconies only available to the school's staff. 

"Yeah, I guess so. I still think Coulson and the Professor made a mistake by choosing me, but clearly they're not changing their minds anytime soon. And I guess I am the best example of a mutant working for the Avengers since Wanda didn't even realize she was a mutant." You took a sip of your drink. "Still not thrilled."

Logan chuckled as he sat next to you. For the past two months you two had hung out at any chance possible. Which, between you each having missions and Logan being a teacher, wasn't as often as you would have liked.

"I think you'll do great, kid. And I'll be there to cheer you on."

"In your silent, brooding manner no doubt."

"I'll leaving the actually cheering to the kids."

You smiled and leaned over to kiss him. "Thanks for supporting me and my stupid decision to agree to this."

He chuckled as he kissed you back. "So when are you giving this life-ending speech?"

"The professor wants me in front of the school by the end of the week. Nat and Clint have been trying to help me write it, but I wanted to ask your opinion."

"Mine?"

"Of course. Who better to give me the perspective of the non-joiner who ended up on a team? There's bound to be a few people like that in your school. Even if they never choose either team, it will help them know it won't be the end of the world to join any team."

Logan nodded his head while he contemplated your request. "You're not gonna need me up there with you, are you?"

You laughed and lightly slapped his arm. "No, I would never do that to you. I just need you to fill me in on the how and why you eventually joined the X-Men."

"Gonna be a long story."

"I'm not going anywhere."

Logan nodded again before going into his story about how he first ended up at the mansion and then as an X-Men. The conversation went well into the night, with you only interrupting a few times with a question or two. By the time he finished, you had a better idea how to address the more reluctant students in the crowd.

"Thank you, Logan. This will help me so much. Now all I have to do is make sure my words come out in a coherent fashion." 

"Any time, kid. You'll do just fine." He walked you back to your bike at the front of the school. "Will I get to see you again before the speech?"

"I hope so. We don't have any missions beforehand, but bad guys don't exactly take vacation days. So the only plans I should have will be writing this damn speech."

He smiled. "Good. Then keep one night free for me. I have a surprise lined up as long as Hydra doesn't get in the way."

You laughed. "It's a date."

Back at the compound you sat in a conference room with Nat and Clint, a pile of crumpled paper threatening to overrun the desk. Coulson walked in just as you flung the pad of paper aside like a frisbee with an annoyed shout.

"I take it the speech writing is going well?"

"I give up. Get the billionaire to do this. I'll even coach him on what to say." You slumped down in your chair.

"Barton, Romanov, I need a moment alone with Agent _____."

The two nodded and left the room. You rolled your eyes as you sat back up. "I'm not an agent anymore."

"Old habits die hard." He pulled up a chair next to you. "So how are you and Logan?"

"Gotta admit, not where I thought this conversation was going."

Coulson chuckled. "I just want to make sure you're doing ok. Clearly you're stressed out over the presentation so I thought I would ask you about other things."

You paused for a moment while you gathered your answer. "Honestly, it's great. I was worried for a micro minute about the age gap, but quickly remembered he is technically too old for anyone." You both laughed at this. "But seriously, it's great to actually date another mutant for once. We have a lot of share experiences so what were once deal breakers for other people are now just a moment we can bond over."

"How does he treat you?" You could see the concern in his eyes.

Smiling, you patted Coulson on the hand. "I get it, really. Everyone's been concerned since day one. Especially Clint. Though at least you guys hide it better than him. Logan is an amazing man. And he treats me with nothing less than respect. Other than wishing I could see him more, there really isn't a complaint as of yet. Now before you start - 'cause I saw you trying to open your mouth - I'm not so young and naive to believe it will always be that way. Logan and I both have damage from our past. Eventually it'll cause an argument or two. But I also think we're both level headed enough to get past those moments."

"What happened to that young lady who joined SHIELD?"

"She was adopted by two super spies and their tough, but dorky boss."

"Dorky?"

"Don't look at me all offended. That's a good thing. It means you're still human after all that's happened. Especially after...." you gestured vaguely at his chest.

"Good point." He chuckled and then went back to his original point. "As long as he's treating you well. I'd hate to have to hide a body."

"No offense, Phil, but that's not literally possible. The man lived through an atomic bomb, so I'm not sure what you, Clint, and Nat could possibly do to him. Though I do appreciate the protective nature." 

"And you believed him?"

"Not at first. I mean, you can see how farfetched that is. But I saw firsthand how quickly he can heal when he was accidentally cut during a training program with the kids. Sure as hell a possibility now.”

“And how quickly is that?”

“As quickly as it appeared. Which was, frankly, very unsettling to watch the first time.”

Coulson blinked at you a few times. "You would think that wouldn't be the strangest thing I've heard of, but it's really up there."

You shrugged. "You've seen quite a few things, Director Coulson. But mutants weren't really a thing you dealt with on a personal level until I came along."

He chuckled and stood up. "I guess you're right." He patted you on the shoulder. "Ok, ____. I'll let you get back to your speech. I just wanted to make sure you were ok. Do you want me to send Thing 1 and Thing 2 back in?"

You smirked up at him. "Might as well. I can practice my aim by hitting Barton in the head with these balls of paper."

Two days later, you were back with Logan and he was leading you into the woods behind the school. He wouldn't give you a hint as to where he was taking you, but he was caring a basket. The sun was starting to set and it was sending beautiful rays of light between the trees. Finally Logan pulled you past a line of trees and you found yourself in front of a lake. The sun had already disappeared behind the trees across the lake and the twilight was reflected in the water.

"Logan, it's so beautiful here." You breathed. 

He was busy setting up a large blanket he pulled from the basket as you walked over to the lake. "I figured you'd like it here. I come here often when I need to get away from the chaos of the school."

You looked over your shoulder at him, amazed to find him setting up a picnic. “Logan, I didn’t know you were so romantic.”

You swore he blushed before he looked back down at the basket. “I have my moments. Though the picnic part was Colossus’ idea. I was just gonna bring you here for the view.”

A smile broke out over your face. “Colossus?”

Logan cleared his throat. “Yeah, he overheard me telling the professor where I was going tonight and felt the need to offer advice.”

“Well lucky for him it was good advice. Though just being here with you would have been enough.” You walked back over and sat on the blanket as Logan finished setting up.

He finally sat next to you and served you a plate of food. You both quietly ate as it grew darker. Before the sun set completely, Logan set up a campfire by the lakeside. You helped him clean up before moving to sit closer to him.

“So are you ready to give your speech tomorrow?”

“Not in the slightest. It’s written but I’m not convinced it’s remotely coherent.”

“Why’s that?”

“Nat and Clint helped me to write it. Nat kept circling the conversation back to you and I while Clint tried to see if he could drink all the coffee.... straight from the pot. It was a dumpster fire.”

Logan chuckled at the image you painted before pulling you in for a long kiss. “You’ll do just fine tomorrow.”

“I’m sure you’re right. But all the same, thanks for tonight. I needed to get my mind off of it.”

“I’m not done yet.” He pulled you in again. You stayed at the lake well into the night, refusing to want to leave Logan’s side.

The next morning, you were back at the school only this time you had Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, and Thing 1 and 2 (aka Nat and Clint) by your side. You were trying not to freak out as the Professor greeted your group before showing you the lecture hall you would be using.

“Hey, kid.” You jumped at Logan’s voice behind you. “Just breathe. It’ll be over before you know it.”

You nodded your head. “I know. But man, anything feels easier than this.”

"You'll be great." He kissed your temple before leaving with the Professor to sit at the back of the room.

Taking a deep breath, you made your way to the front of the room to stand behind the podium. You waited for everyone to find a seat and settle down before you pulled out your notes.

"Good morning. I'm ____ _____, and I'll-" your voice stuck in your throat. You took another shaky breath and raised your eyes, first finding your teammates and then Logan. He gave you a smile and a small nod of his head. You returned the nod. "And I'm here to talk to you about the Avenger's Initiative."


End file.
